The Problem with Not Reporting Scams with Kathy Stokes
Easy Prey12 Juni 2024

The Problem with Not Reporting Scams with Kathy Stokes

Many assume that scammers just target the more mature in age, but they go after everyone. Younger people who may have been manipulated may not have the same amount of money to lose, but that doesn't mean they aren't being targeted.

Today's guest is Kathy Stokes. Kathy is the Director of Fraud Prevention Programs with AARP. She leads the AARP social mission work to educate older adults on the risks that fraud represents to their financial security. She currently serves on the advisory council to the Board of International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators and on the advisory council to the Senior Issues Committee of the North American Securities Administrators Association.

Show Notes:
  • [1:02] - Kathy shares her background, what she does at AARP, and what AARP actually is.
  • [3:50] - AARP has had a Fraud Watch Network for a while, but its current form is different from years past.
  • [5:29] - There is a concerted effort to bring the generations together to educate others in the community.
  • [7:26] - It is a common misconception that older people are targeted more often than other age groups.
  • [10:38] - The biggest barrier is something that is beginning to break down. It's the shame and victim blaming. We are at a turning point.
  • [12:50] - Unfortunately, police officers are not able to do much for financial crimes, but it is still important to report them.
  • [16:01] - Most scams are considered "low ticket" items, even if it is several thousand dollars and that's all you have.
  • [18:08] - AARP has a resource for how to talk about scams with family members who have been a victim of a scam. https://www.aarp.org/saythis
  • [20:50] - Rewording how we talk to and about victims of scams is changing.
  • [24:23] - You have to have a strong and unique password for literally everything.
  • [25:27] - Even just one extra layer of protection in the form of two-factor authentication is helpful.
  • [28:10] - No one will ever ask you for an authentication code over the phone.
  • [30:20] - There's got to be something we can do as a society to help victims with the money they've lost.
  • [32:48] - We cannot trust incoming communication, including calls, emails, and texts.
  • [36:45] - Education and continuing to talk about this will help keep the trend of less victim shaming going.
  • [39:30] - Victims can change the verbiage as well. Report the scam and file a police report.
  • [41:29] - You can and should also report scams you know about even if you did not experience a loss.
  • [43:10] - A number to use to reach the Fraud Watch Network is 877-908-3360.
  • [48:09] - If someone you know has been a victim of a scam, don't get mad at them for "falling for it," get mad that this was done to them.

Thanks for joining us on Easy Prey. Be sure to subscribe to our podcast on iTunes and leave a nice review.

Links and Resources:

Avsnitt(321)

Art Heists

Art Heists

The world of art theft looks glamorous in the movies, but the reality is far more complicated. From multi-million dollar forgery schemes to undercover FBI operations recovering stolen national treasur...

29 Apr 37min

The Power of Prediction

The Power of Prediction

We make predictions all the time including about the weather, about traffic, about what someone is going to say next. It feels natural, even rational. But when algorithms start making predictions abou...

22 Apr 39min

Privacy vs Reality

Privacy vs Reality

Online security advice often sounds simple until you actually try to follow it. Between password managers, privacy settings, and data brokers, protecting yourself can start to feel like a full-time jo...

15 Apr 58min

Wired to Trust

Wired to Trust

It's easy to think scams only work when someone misses something obvious. In reality, most of them don't look obvious at the start. They show up as normal situations with just enough friction to notic...

8 Apr 41min

Intimate Partner Fraud

Intimate Partner Fraud

Most scams leave a digital trail. A fake email, a spoofed number, a fraudulent website. You can trace them, report them, sometimes even reverse them. But what happens when the scam has no digital trai...

1 Apr 45min

Identity without Passwords

Identity without Passwords

Every day, employees at hotels, restaurants, and resorts across the country are doing exactly what they were hired to do: being warm, responsive, and eager to help. It's what makes hospitality work. I...

25 Mars 38min

When Cybercrime Gets Personal

When Cybercrime Gets Personal

Most security breaches don't begin with sophisticated code or elaborate technical exploits. They begin with a phone call, a convincing email, or someone at a help desk who just wanted to be helpful. T...

18 Mars 45min

Stopping Phone Scams

Stopping Phone Scams

Phone scams get dismissed as background noise or just annoying interruptions and unknown numbers with robotic voices we learn to ignore. But behind that noise is an industry built on psychology, autom...

11 Mars 45min

Populärt inom Politik & nyheter

aftonbladet-krim
rss-krimstad
p3-krim
svenska-fall
spar
aftonbladet-daily
politiken
flashback-forever
rss-sanning-konsekvens
rss-expressen-dok
rss-krimreportrarna
motiv
rss-vad-fan-hande
kungligt
ett-rent-noje
blenda-2
grans
rss-frandfors-horna
rss-flodet
svd-ledarredaktionen